A lis pendens is a pending lawsuit or legal action, or a formal notice of a pending lawsuit or legal action. For example, a lis pendens is an official public notice that a piece of real property has a pending lawsuit or claim attached to it—which may be especially relevant to potential buyers of the property, as a sale of the property will probably not extinguish or resolve the pending claim.

Lis pendens might also refer to the jurisdiction (power, authority, control) a court acquires over property while a legal action is pending. Or lis pendens may refer to a notice recorded in the public records (often county records) in the chain of title to a piece of real property—which is required or permitted in some jurisdictions to put all persons on notice that the property is the subject of litigation or of a claim. This notice informs potential buyers of the property that their future ownership of the property may be subject to other claims.

Lis pendens is often used when spouses are going through the divorce process and their real property assets, for example, have not been finally divided by their agreement or by the court. Banks commonly use the lis pendens process to put the public on notice that a property is in foreclosure. And a homeowners’ association may file a lis pendens when it seeks to foreclose on a homeowner’s home to satisfy delinquent fees or assessments.

The procedure for a lis pendens is usually located in a state’s statutes—often in the property code or in the code of civil procedure, for example.

In Pennsylvania (PA), a lis pendens is a notice that a lawsuit has been filed which may affect the title to or possession of real property. This notice is typically recorded in the county where the property is located, and it serves to warn potential purchasers or those with an interest in the property that there is pending litigation that could affect their rights. Pennsylvania law requires that a lis pendens be filed with the prothonotary of the court where the action is pending. The lis pendens must include a description of the property involved and the nature of the claim. It is commonly used in cases of divorce when property division is in dispute, in foreclosure proceedings by banks, and by homeowners' associations seeking to enforce payment of fees. The purpose of recording a lis pendens is to preserve the rights of the party filing it and to put third parties on notice of the pending legal action. The effect of a lis pendens is to maintain the status quo of the property's title until the lawsuit is resolved, and it may discourage others from purchasing or otherwise dealing with the property until the litigation is settled.